Minor-league baseball: Pacifics blank Sonoma to split six-game series

After 21 games against the Sonoma Stompers minor-league baseball team, San Rafael reliever Chris Rice practically knows their lineup inside-out.

The same goes for his own strengths and weaknesses against them.

"There are certain guys I know can throw certain pitches to," he said following Sunday afternoon's 1-0 win at Albert Park. "Joel Carranza, I just can't get him out. I told him, 'You got to give me a break."

Such is the familiarity level among the four Pacific Association clubs at this point in the season — and recent scores reflect it.

Sunday's victory was the sixth game in six days between San Rafael (29-19) and Sonoma, and the third contest decided by a single run. Only one tilt in the series, last Tuesday's opener, was decided by more than two runs.

"That's been a common theme this second half," said closer Colin Allen, who picked up his league-leading 11th save in helping four Pacifics pitchers combine on a shutout.

"When you play guys so many times in a row, you know the pitchers and you know the batters," he said. "You can pick up and observe and see tendencies."

And with the pressure constant, San Rafael's pitchers delivered after Danny Gonzalez's sacrifice groundout in the second inning provided the only run of the game.

Dan Rogers was solid in a spot start out of the bullpen; filling in for Ryan DeJesus, who was battling arm soreness, the Redwood City native tossed five strong innings to improve to 3-0.

Allen and Rice, both of whom had given up costly hits earlier in the series, then combined with Michael Kershner to provide scoreless relief the rest of the way.

The four hurlers scattered eight total hits, all walking away with earned run averages of 3.00 or lower. And with Sonoma starter Erik Gonsalves holding San Rafael to just five hits over eight innings, they needed to be at their best.

"As a pitching staff, we're trying to go off our last outings and adjust from there. Everyone is keeping their heads held high," said Rogers, who allowed four hits and struck out five in his second start of the year.

"These have been great ballgames," he added. "On (Sonoma's) walk-offs, you just tip your hat to them. That doesn't mean you can give in the next time you play."

Indeed, they were able to escape each threat by the Stompers (27-21).

In the top of the first, Rogers faced runners on the corners with two outs but got out by fanning Steve Rinaudo.

Rice later escaped a jam of his own, coming on in the sixth and placing runners on second and third with one out. Facing Jaime Del Valle, who walked off against him on Thursday, he forced a ground-out to first before striking out Andrew Parker.

And after Allen opened the ninth with the "cardinal sin" of lead-off walk, the bearded righty retired his next three batters to shut things down.

"I like my game plan of attacking the strike zone and using my cutter, trying to pitch to contact," said Allen, who rebounded from his first-ever blown save with San Rafael on Friday. "When you're given the ball, you go do it."

Notes

• Ryan Priddy is back in a familiar role for the Pacifics, taking over officially as the team's interim manager on Tuesday before the start of the Sonoma series.

Priddy, who hit .231 with eight RBI as a third baseman in 2014, retired from playing to take up the position. He also served as interim manager last summer after Jamie Frisbie stepped down due to health concerns.

Allen said the team's morale has been "great" amid the changes.

"Ryan is experienced and has done a great job. We try to feed off each other," he said. "He lets us play. It's been good.

• Jeremy Williams helped Rogers escape the fifth with a man on second, diving for a foul ball for the final out of the inning.

• Zack Pace had three of San Rafael's five hits. His average of .329 is good for second in the league behind Vallejo's Jordan Hinshaw. R

• Rinaudo, Carranza and Reid Chenworth all had two hits apiece for Sonoma.